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Somerset businesses lose out on £1m due to flooding

A FIRST glimpse of the economic impact of the flooding on Somerset businesses has been revealed.

The Somerset Chamber of Commerce conducted a survey which showed an average of £17,352 per business being lost in just six weeks.

While many businesses said it was still too early to tell, 71 of 170 estimated they have lost a combined £1,232,009 in financial terms and lost productivity since the start of this year.

Rupert Cox, CEO of the Somerset Chamber of Commerce, said: “The reality is that the £10million allocated for helping businesses is only going to scratch the surface.

“We must do everything we can to make sure the required investment in infrastructure is made to protect homes and business in Somerset so that this situation is never allowed to happen again.”

The results mean flooding has had an impact on 70 % of the businesses surveyed, with almost 40 % facing a reduction in customers and more than 35% seeing a fall in sales.

Power cuts have affected 14% of the businesses and one in ten has been without a telephone and/or broadband due to the adverse weather conditions.

Almost 40 % said their commute to work has been affected by the flooding and 44% said employees had been late or off work this year due to the flooding, with the average amount of time lost totalling almost ten working days per business.